3S6 



Account of the Province of Ramnud. 



[April 



Ragunat'ha-kaveri, flows upwards of twenty-four miles through the 

 country to the eastward, being preserved in its course over a fine plane, 

 and affords the means of cultivating the lands upon the whole of its 

 tract, sluices having been constructed for this purpose, most of which, 

 unfortunately, are now in ruins. This channel wastes itself ultimately 

 in the Kullari lake, and the superabundant flow of salt-water issuing 

 from the southern kalingula of this lake, falls into the salt-marsh below 

 the village Vigay, and, cutting through it, assumes the name of Kot- 

 tegudi-ar, which communicates with the sea, on the west of the spot 

 called Adisetu-tirtha. The Kund-ar, or the surplus water that de- 

 scends from the kalingula on the east of the town of Kamuri, winds 

 in a south-easterly course for twenty-two miles, runs towards Mukur, 

 supplying in its tract a few lakes, and disembogues into the sea. It 

 has a wide but shallow entrance, and a heavy shoal renders the free 

 access of boats at the mouth impracticable. 



LAKES OR RESERVOIRS. 



These are variouslv named ; the larger are called Yeris and Kum- 

 mis, the lesser ones Yendels. The country abounds with them ; several 

 of the large ones are supplied by c?ials from the rivers, while others 

 of less magnitude are filled by the local rains ; the latter do not retain 

 the water for more than three or four months. Although the larger 

 lakes have a source whence they receive a constant and ample supply, 

 yet the advantage of retaining their waters -throughout the year is 

 lost, from neglect of the regular system of inspection and repair. The 

 periodical rains usually set in about the months of October and Novem- 

 ber, and the country then exhibits an almost entire watery surface; the 

 great body of water confined by the embankments of the lakes spreads 

 out to a great extent, often overflowing and destroying the embank- 

 ments, greatly to the prejudice of the after cultivation of the lands, 

 which depends upon the strength and preservation of these banks. 

 When a general drought prevails, the inhabitants dig small pits in the 

 beds of the reservoirs, whence they obtain a scanty and muddy draught. 

 At this season the people are generally assailed by a disease called 

 Guinea-worm ; but they are so much inured to this tumour in their legs, 

 that they think little of it. Of the principal Yeris, the following seem 

 more particularly to deserve description, viz.: 



Rasingamangalam, a large lake situated between the smaller lakes 

 Kokaurne and Koshavan; its length from the north bank to the 

 southern opposite extremity being nine miles, varying in breadth from 

 one to two miles. It receives on the north side the stream of a rivulet 

 that flows from the high lands in Sivaganga, denominated the Kotta- 

 karai-ar, and, on the south-south-west, the waters of the Vigay river. 

 This lake originally watered about five thousand seven hundred and 



